The dashing Duke of Tresham wonders why he's so attracted to Jane Ingleby, the serving wench who nurses him back to health after a duel—until he figures out that her ladylike manner and accomplishments are the first clue to her real identity. Scandal is nothing new to the handsome Duke, nor are duels. But his latest opponent had the effrontery actually to shoot Tresham in the leg—whereupon Jane happened upon the scene and let out a shriek that momentarily distracted all parties. Nonetheless, Tresham stood his ground and gallantly fired into the air. No matter that he deliberately missed: his brief affair with his opponent's wife isn't worth killing anyone over. Still, the bullet in his calf must be removed, and Tresham must lie abed for at least three weeks. Jane is immediately pressed into service and put at his lordship's beck and call, which beats working as a milliner's assistant. Tresham has no way of knowing that she's an earl's daughter on the run from scheming relatives who control her considerable inheritance, or that her dead father’s wicked brother had encouraged an unattractive and unsuitable young buck to pursue her—and attempt to ravish her—or that Jane whacked him with a thick book, knocked him unconscious, and is now under suspicion of murder (even though the young buck in question is very much alive—just humiliated and in hiding). But by the time the Bow Street Runners catch up with her and drag her back to the family estate in Cornwall, the Duke has caught on. He leaves his beloved London to rescue his lady fair—who's become much more than a mistress in the interim, of course. A pleasant and agreeably sensual Regency romp, although nothing out of the ordinary.. . . Benedict, Helen THE SAILOR’S WIFE Zoland (224 pp.) $24.00 Oct. 2000 ISBN: 1-58195-024-1 A schematic third novel from Benedict ( A World Like This , 1990; Bad Angel , 1995) uses a young woman's learning curve in love and life as a clumsy forum for a debate on freedom versus duty. When 18-year-old Joyce Pearlman meets Nikos, a Greek sailor, in a Miami supermarket in the early 1970s, she's aimless, thinks her parents uncaring, and is ready for the change and love Nikos offers. But Nikos, as handsome as any Greek god, is a traditional man who expects his wife to obey both him and his mother. Once married, he takes Joyce home to the small island of Ifestia, where she lives with Mom and Dad while Nikos sails the seven seas. Mother-in-law Dimitra, a tough old bird who has survived countless wars (her biography conveniently leads to a reprise of recent Greek history), is determined that Joyce, though an American, will make Nikos the wife he deserves. She beats Joyce, makes her do the roughest chores, and keeps her busy working the family's small hardscrabble farm. Initially, Joyce appreciates the closeness her new family offers—she understands that Nikos' parents do love her—and accepts the traditional limits on women's freedom. But when she meets Alex, an educated young Englishman, she begins to question these restrictions.The two meet secretly, and Joyce is again smitten—whereupon the boorish Nikos suddenly returns. Joyce, who has kept her Jewish faith a secret, now finds herself overwhelmed by the flood of other secrets she's keeping. When an English girl tells her that “if you have to hide so much from the people you love, you can never be free,” and when further revelations come out on all sides, Joyce realizes she’s got to make a new life for herself. If only Joyce had remembered to beware of Greeks bearing gifts. As is, she's stuck in a novel with a creaky plot, thin characters, and old arguments.

When his duel is interrupted by the shriek of a maidservant, Jocelyn Dudley, duke of Tresham, is shot in the leg. As punishment for her disruptive outburst, Jane Ingleby is forced to nurse the ill-tempered Tresham back to health. But impudent and strong-willed Jane is not what she claims. And after making her his mistress-and then falling in love-Dudley learns that Jane is really a missing Cornish heiress, a murderess and thief, and the talk of the town. Rosalyn Landor gives a winning performance, bringing her rich, sonorous voice to the book's aristocratic, Regency-era characters and providing narration that is crisp, well paced, and highly entertaining. Landor produces a host of distinct and believable voices-including a nasally cockney accent for the lower classes-for the many characters that populate Balogh's bestselling romance. A Piatkus Books paperback. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

When Jane Ingleby tries to stop a duel, Jocelyn Dudley, Duke of Tresham, is wounded. So it's surprising that she ends up employed as his nurseDand ultimately his mistress as well. But as their relationship blossoms, Jocelyn commits the unpardonable sin of falling in love. In this refreshingly unconventional romance, which boasts an outspoken, memorable heroine, the author again pushes the edges of the genre. Her fans will be waiting. Balogh (One Night for Love) is a well-respected writer of historical romance who lives in Canada. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Best-selling romance author Balogh makes her hardcover debut with this luscious Regency-era delight. Jane startles the Duke of Tresham during a duel, distracting him so that he is shot in the leg. In an attempt to punish the uppity servant girl, the duke insists that she work for him as his nurse for three weeks. She's not at all what he expected, and she is the only one in his life who dares to stand up to him, but she tries to melt into the woodwork when visitors speculate about a Cornish scandal involving the young Lady Sarah Illingsworth, who is rumored to have robbed her guardian's home and slain his heir. Meanwhile, Jane and the duke discover some common ground, and when her time is up, she has three choices: she can make her own way in the world, accept the duke's help in launching a singing career, or become his mistress. Balogh will delight fans and new readers alike with her memorable characters and fast-paced, well-constructed plot. --Diana Tixier Herald